Lessons learned from a steak dinner with an NBA high performance coach

I recently had the opportunity to go to dinner with Alan Stein, Jr.

He’s a renowned keynote speaker and high-performance coach.

Some of the biggest brands in the world - Pepsi, Spotify, Starbucks, and Under Armour, to name just a few - have hired him.

Most interestingly, he’s worked with some of the world’s most iconic athletes; the late Kobe Bryant, Stephen Curry, and LeBron James are on that list.

My friend and business partner, Matt Vaadi, had Alan booked as the keynote speaker at his annual Growth Summit event last month.

When Matt invited me to dinner with him, Alan, and a couple of others the night before, I jumped at the chance.

I knew that Alan got his start at Montrose Christian as a strength and conditioning trainer.

One of his pupils was a guy named Kevin Durant.

Durant. Kobe. Curry. LeBron.

This is a guy who once received a handwritten note from Mike Krzyzewski and personally knows athletes I have loved watching over the years.

So yeah, I had a lot of questions.

I didn’t want to turn the dinner into my personal storytime.

If I’m being honest, I wish I would have asked more.

In fact, there’s a bonus takeaway right off the bat.

Ask questions of smart people. Learn from them.

(Fortunately, Alan’s a great guy, and he will let me bug him in the future!)

He’s been around some awesome athletes, sure. But Alan also has a great entrepreneur story of his own. He worked his way up to becoming a full-time, highly sought-after speaker for successful people and brands.

After the dinner - we had a great steak at Hall’s Chophouse - I devoured more of Alan’s material that was available online.

The next day, I watched him as he prepared for his speech.

Between all that, I walked away with three key takeaways.

I hope they can be of value to you.

Don’t get bored with the basics.

Alan tells the story of how he had once had the opportunity to observe Kobe Bryant at a private workout in Los Angeles.

The gym was empty. It was 3:30 a.m.

Alan was riveted.

What types of things would one of the best basketball players ever be doing?

What he saw was surprising.

Kobe was doing basic drills.

Like, things Alan showed to middle school players.

But Kobe was doing them. Over and over. At full speed.

“Why are you doing those?” Alan asked.

“Why do you think I’m the best player in the world?” Kobe asked back with a wink. “I never get bored with the basics.”

It’s a great lesson that can be applied outside of a gym.

Whatever you do, don’t forget about the basics.

If you’re a content creator, create content.

If your product is customer-focused, stay hyper-focused on satisfying customers.

Jeff Bezos was dialed-in on this when he started Amazon, if you need a non-basketball example.

Stop and think about the most basic aspects of your business. Jot them down.

For me, it’s content creation. I’m a content creator at heart.

Have you neglected any of them?

With everything I have going on, my answer is yes.

Now jot down how you can refocus on those things.

My note to myself? Create content more regularly.

Simple. But effective.

Do the basics over and over. Keep getting better.

If middle school basketball drills were a key part of Kobe Bryant’s success, refocusing on the basics of your business should be a part of yours, too.

Blend confidence with humility.

No, you do not have it all figured out, even if you are the best at what you do.

Pick someone who’s been super successful in your niche.

If you listen to any of those successful people, they are constantly trying to find ways to get better.

They have put in the reps to where they can be confident in their abilities.

They have failed privately and they have failed publicly.

I sometimes struggle with what Justin Welsh, one of my favorite creators, calls “shiny outcome syndrome.”

You see the end result of someone’s very successful journey.

You don’t see their equivalent of 3:30 a.m. workouts.

Stop and remember that you didn’t see the years of work - and failures - that got those people to that point.

Alan is a great example here.

He is one of the best in his field. One of the nicest guys I’ve met in person. But he also makes time to respond to emails and LinkedIn messages. He goes to dinner with strangers like me and asks questions about their families and their backgrounds.

He’s very successful, yes. He’s also very humble.

Keep this in mind as you continue your journey.

Be process-driven.

As I have grown professionally, I’ve filled up my plate.

I’m an idealist, pie-in-the-sky type of guy.

That can be good, but it can also be a detriment.

I can sometimes lose focus and leave out crucial parts of what I need to get done.

Anyone can have ideas and set goals.

Those are good things!

But those who are the best at their craft add execution to the equation.

Alan says that the world’s best athletes - like the ones mentioned here - are also process-driven.

They have a plan, and they are relentless in executing it.

One area in which I observed Alan following a process during our time together: his diet.

He’s very intentional about what he eats, and he’s in great shape as a result.

(He did eat the steak.)

You don’t reach a goal by doing something once, or just for a day.

Have goals? Great. Make sure the actions you are taking move you closer toward them.

I hope today’s edition was valuable.

Chris

P.S. You can watch my full interview with Alan Stein Jr. here.

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